School Name: Sherwood Heights School
Team Size: 1 or 2
Grade Category: 4-6
ProjectType: Experimental
Subject Area: Health
Language: English
Team Captain First Name: Minal
Team Captain Last Name: Aundhia
Awards Obtained: Honourable Mention for the School Science fair Project
Specials Skills Used: HTML
Project Title: It's Like Music To My Heart!
The pulse rate is controlled by the autonomic nervous system consisting of the
sympathetic nerve from the spinal cord and the parasympathetic nerve from the brain
stem ( also called the vagus nerve).
The sympathetic nerve releases noradrenaline which makes the heart beat faster while
the parasympathetic nerve releases acetylcholine which makes the heart beat slower.
External musical sound stimulates a receptor cell in the inner ear. An electrical signal
travels from the ear to the cortex of the brain, which is connected to the autonomic
nervous system.Depending on whether the cortex stimulates the sympathetic nerve or
the parasympathetic nerve the heart rate increases or decreases, respectively.The
physiology of music perception has been investigated by different methods such as
Neuroimaging Electro Encephalography ( EEG ), Positron Electron Tomography ( PET )
Scan and Doppler Ultrasound, but a conclusive mechanism has not been established.
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